A CE Course Can Only Be Counted Once

Just like you don’t dip your chip back into the guacamole, you don’t double-dip when it comes to your continuing-education credits.

Hours that you earn in a continuing-education class can only be counted once.

Florida Professional Engineer licenses are valid for two years beginning March 1 of each odd-numbered year. During that two-year period, or biennium, PEs must complete 18 hours of continuing education. The deadline for completing your continuing education is Feb. 28 of each odd-numbered year, when licensure renewal closes.

During the online renewal process, PEs must legally attest to completing all 18 hours by the last day of the renewal period.

After each renewal period, 3 percent of Florida’s licensed engineers are randomly selected for a continuing-education audit.

If you fail an audit, you are automatically re-audited the next period.

Anytime a PE is ordered to take continuing-education courses to fulfill the requirements from a previous renewal, those CE credits cannot be used again to meet the current renewal requirements, even if they are taken within the same biennium.

For example, a PE failed to complete the Florida laws-and-rules course in the 2021 audit, and was required to complete that course late to bring them into compliance. When it is again time to renew their license in 2023, the PE may not use that same CE provider or CE certificate to meet the current continuing-education requirements.

In addition, if disciplinary action ordered by the Board requires a PE to complete a professionalism and ethics course, that course cannot be used to meet CE requirements.

Here are tips for providing proof of continuing education when asked by the Board:

• When responding to a CE audit, provide only certificates for courses that are completed.
• Service as a member of the Legislature or as an elected state or local official meets requirements for the laws-and-rules and ethics courses.
• To claim CE credit for teaching a college course, a PE must provide a letter from the university or college that lists the name of the course, the dates taught, and the first time that the course was taught by the PE. You may only use the teaching of a college course once, regardless of whether you updated the course materials. Also, full-time faculty may not use the teaching of college courses as substitute CE credit.
• To claim CE credit for a peer-reviewed paper, a PE must provide the paper and include the date of the peer review and who conducted the review.
• To claim CE credit for a patent, a PE must provide documentation from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office assigning the patent number.
• To claim CE credit for making a presentation at a “lunch and learn,” a PE must provide a letter from whomever requested the presentation, with the topic, date, and length of time of the presentation.
• To claim CE credit for presentations to professional or technical societies, a PE must provide a letter from the organization with the topic, date, and length of time of the presentation.
• To obtain CE credit for serving as an officer of a professional or technical society, a PE must provide a letter from the organization that indicates what office was held and the term of the service. CE credits are not earned until the end of each calendar year of completed service.

For complete information on demonstrating compliance with continuing-education requirements, please see Rule 61G15-22.006, Florida Administrative Code.